East Shore Lake Superior, Ontario

Steven Dutch, Professor Emeritus, Natural and Applied Sciences, Universityof Wisconsin - Green Bay


D: Devonian rocks of the Michigan Basin
LS: Late Silurian rocks of the Michigan Basin
ES: Early Silurian rocks of the Michigan Basin
EO: Early Ordovician rocks of the Michigan Basin
Z: Precambrian Z clastic sedimentary rocks
Ys: Precambrian Y sedimentary rocks
Yv: Precambrian Y volcanic rocks, predominately basalt
Xs: Precambrian X metasedimentary rocks
Xv: Precambrian X metavolcanic rocks
Xmi: Precambrian X mafic intrusions (Nipissing Diabase)
Wgn Precambrian W (Archean) rocks, mostly gneiss with granite
Wg: Precambrian W granite with other rocks
Wa: Precambrian W syenite and other alkaline rocks
Wv: Precambrian W metavolcanic rocks, mostly mafic
Wf: Precambrian W felsic metavolcanic rocks
Wt: Precambrian W tonalite

East of Marathon

Once the Trans-Canada Highway leaves the shore at Marathon, the scenery becomes fairly bland. Apart from this nice view the scenery is mostly flat and hemmed in by forest.
The road curves from east to south over the 180 kilometers from Marathon to Wawa.

Wawa

I was nearing Wawa when, without warning, there was a moose right by the road. My insurance shot wasn't much insurance - the moose is the lump on the roadside left of the white tree trunk.
Fortunately the moose cooperated by
  1. Letting me back up to get some decent shots and most importantly
  2. Not charging my car
Wawa is best known for its goose statue.

When I was doing my field work at Sudbury in the 1970's, hitchhikers told me that Wawa had the reputation of being the worst place on the whole Trans-Canada Highway to hitch a ride. I was told that someone once waited here a month to get a ride. (I could walk from Wawa to Thunder Bay in a month.)

Looking north up the highway from the goose overlook.
Views of a nearby lake from the goose overlook.
Downtown Wawa
 

High Falls

High Falls is a short distance south of Wawa
 

East Shore

Although Michipicoten Island is the second largest island in Lake Superior (after Isle Royale), and is 30 kilometers long by 10 wide, the only road-accessible place to see it is on the shore a little south of Wawa. Even there, it is just barely visible on the horizon.

Petroglyphs on Agawa Bay

ONT LSUP94 940811 au94-17 East Shore Lake Superior
Just to get you in shape for the approach, you have to go under the wedged rock.
Most of the petroglyphs are on that sloping shelf, which is just steep enough to keep you constantly off balance.
Here you have it. Proof positive Indians saw dinosaurs. The authorities are hushing it all up, of course. My tinfoil hat blocks their jamming signals, however.

The more prosaic version is the petroglyph may be an offering of thanks for a successful canoe voyage on the lake.

Batchawana Bay

 

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Created 24 May 2006, Last Update 06 June 2020